Public warned to be wary of NSW fugitive

Police on the trail of fugitive Malcolm Naden are urging all gun owners in northern NSW to ensure their firearms are safely locked away.

The warning comes as the search continues for the state's most wanted man, who managed to evade two officers who confronted him at gunpoint earlier this week.

It's the closest authorities have come to Naden since he shot an officer in the shoulder in dense bushland near Nowendoc on December 7.

Police say rural residents in the Nowendoc area should remain vigilant and make sure their homes and belongings are secure.

"Naden has sought to gain access to firearms during break and enters on previous occasions," Assistant Commissioner Carlene York said in a statement.

"We continue to urge local residents to ensure their safety and security is a priority, as we believe this wanted man is dangerous."

Local general-duties police officers went to a cabin at Nowendoc, east of Tamworth, on Wednesday following reports of a break-in.

They arrived to find Naden outside the property.

The large strike force hunting Naden was about 40km away at the time, searching another area.

The local officers drew their weapons and spoke to Naden, but he disappeared inside the cabin and then fled into nearby bushland.

"There's many exits from the premises, so as the police called for back-up on the radio ... It's surrounded by heavy bushland, quite difficult to contain, and he fled out into the bush," Ms York told reporters on Friday.

The decision to send two general-duties officers to the property was made partly because of the rugged terrain and a large number of break-ins in the area, Ms York said.

A gun was recovered at the cabin and Naden's fingerprints were found inside.

Ms York said the officers would have been permitted to shoot Naden, based on their assessment of events.

Ms York said Naden was still considered to be armed and dangerous but he would be increasingly cold and hungry.

Naden has been on the run since 2005, when he fled his grandparents' home in west Dubbo days after his cousin, 24-year-old mother-of-two Kristy Scholes, was found strangled in his bedroom.

Naden is also suspected of involvement in the disappearance a few months earlier of another of his cousins, Lateesha Nolan, and the rape of a 15-year-old schoolgirl.